Earthquake Safety Program

Earthquake Safety

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Major Earthquake Safety Program Construction in Progress. 
View the Construction Updates Page.


On This Page:

A Vital Transportation System 
More Earthquakes Predicted 
Transbay Tube Retrofit 
Program Purpose and Benefits 
Vulnerability Study 
System Elements 
Duration and Funding 
Citizens' Oversight Committee


A Vital Transportation System

BART is one of the Bay Area's most vital transportation links. Before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic BART carried about 400,000 riders every weekday; and during the peak of the commute across the San Francisco Bay, BART carried as many travelers as the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Ridership fell dramatically during the pandemic but it has started to grow as more riders return to their offices and use BART to attend public events. The BART system represents a public investment currently valued at nearly $15 billion, with immeasurable importance to the local and regional economy.

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Major Earthquakes Predicted

BART's success in maintaining continuous service directly after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake reconfirmed the system's importance as a transportation "lifeline." However, Loma Prieta may not be the biggest test of BART's ability to withstand seismic impact. A U.S. Geological Survey statistical analysis has predicted a high probability of one or more major earthquakes hitting the Bay Area within the next 30 years. Unlike Loma Prieta, which was centered more than 50 miles south of San Francisco, future earthquakes could be close to or directly under the BART system.

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Transbay Tube Retrofit

The Transbay Tube is BART’s most critical asset. Although the tube is structurally sound, in a very large and very rare earthquake, the outer shell and concrete liner are predicted to crack. To address concerns of flooding, BART is embarking on a massive project to retrofit the tube that will involve the installation of an inner steel shell and new pumping system.  Read more about this project.

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Program Purpose and Benefits

Because of the likelihood BART will be subject to a major earthquake, and to safeguard the public's significant investment in the system, BART has initiated the Earthquake Safety Program. The program will upgrade vulnerable portions of the original BART system to ensure safety for the public and BART employees. Portions of the original system with the highest traffic will be upgraded not only for life safety but also to ensure that they can return to operation shortly after a major earthquake. The upgrades will be accomplished by using the latest seismic standards to improve the structural integrity of BART facilities.

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Vulnerability Study

One of the first and most critical undertakings of the Earthquake Safety Program was a systemwide Vulnerability Study, an assessment of how system components would perform during a major earthquake.

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Bay Area seismic fault line map 
Bay Area faults in the BART service area 

System Elements

The Earthquake Safety Program addresses the original BART system completed between 1972 and 1976, with a service area spanning three counties -- Alameda, Contra Costa and San Francisco. System extensions, built mostly during the 1990s, employed more stringent and up-to-date seismic criteria than the original system, and thus do not require upgrades. The original BART system includes the following elements:

  • 74 miles of track
  • 34 stations (11 elevated, 14 subway and 9 at-grade)
  • The Transbay Tube
  • The BART Caldecott Tunnel
  • Train maintenance yards
  • Terminal, operations and administration facilities
  • Power, mechanical, train control and communications equipment

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Duration and Funding

We anticipate the completion of all earthquake upgrades by 2023.

The Earthquake Safety Program budget is $1.457 billion. The current funding sources include:

  • $980 million from General Obligation Bonds (Regional Measure AA)
  • $116 million from California Department of Transportation Local Seismic Safety Retrofit Program
  • $93 million from Regional Measure 2 (RM2), State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), Prop 1B
  • $60 million from investment return
  • $194 million from Measure RR
  • $11.5 million from Transportation Congestion Relief Program (TCRP)
  • $3 million from FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation Program

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Citizens' Oversight Committee

On November 2, 2004, Bay Area voters passed Regional Measure AA, which authorized BART to issue bonds for $980 million to make earthquake safety improvements to BART facilities in Alameda, Contra Costa and San Francisco counties. The measure also required BART to establish a Citizens’ Oversight Committee to monitor the progress and effective use of funding.

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